Judith Mok
Judith Mok (born 1958 in Bergen, North Holland) is a Dutch soprano, author and poet. She lives in Ireland and has released novels and other works in English.
Early life and education
[edit]Judith Mok was born in 1958[1] in Bergen, North Holland, the daughter of Holocaust survivors Moses (later Maurits) Mok and Riemke Timmermans,[2] who met after World War II.[3] Her father was a writer, poet, and translator, and her mother was a newspaper columnist and singer. Mok has an older half-sister who is Dutch and was a pre-adolescent when her grandparents were arrested during World War II.[2]
As a young child, Mok moved back and forth between Bergan and Southern France.[2] At age 14, she entered the Royal Conservatory of The Hague, where she was accepted into both the dance and music programs. She eventually studied under Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, a German-born opera soprano who had supported the Nazis and sang at Auschwitz concentration camp while Mok's grandparents were there. At age 19, Mok published her first short story collection,[4] then graduated the following year.[5]
Career
[edit]Mok's career has included singing soprano with the opera, as well as writing.[3]
She published her first poetry collection at age 19[4] and has since published additional collections.[6] She has also published three novels, as well as a memoir, The State of Dark, in which she discusses her family's history related to the Holocaust, including the fact that 163 of her family members were killed.[3][4][7][8] Some of her books are written in English and others in Dutch.
Mok began singing professionally when she was 21 years old.[9] As of 2021, she also provides voice coaching to singers.[3][5]
Personal life
[edit]Mok was married to a Frenchman for six months, ending shortly after Mok met poet and critic Michael O'Loughlin in Barcelona. Mok became pregnant with and O'Loughlin's daughter, Saar; the couple married in 1988,[10] then moved to Ireland in 2002.[2][4]
She speaks six languages.[9][10]
Publications
[edit]Anthology contributions
[edit]- O'Connor, Rebecca, ed. (2012). "Pirates". Scéalta: Short Stories by Irish Women. Telegram Books. ISBN 978-1-846-59159-4.[11]
Poetry
[edit]- Sterkwater (in Dutch). Holland: de Prom. 1985. ISBN 978-9-068-01037-4.
- Materiaal (in Dutch). Holland: de Prom. 1991. ISBN 978-9-068-01284-2.
- Het Feestmaal (in Dutch). Holland: Meulenhoff. 1997. ISBN 978-9-029-05564-2.
- Gods of Babel. Salmon Poetry. 2011. ISBN 978-1-907-05680-2.
Memoir
[edit]- The State of Dark. Dublin: The Lilliput Press. 2022. ISBN 978-1-843-51850-1.
Novels
[edit]- Argelozen in het Circus (in Dutch). Holland: Toth. 1992. ISBN 978-9-068-68040-9.
- De Beul (in Dutch). Meulenhoff. 2000. ISBN 978-9-029-05836-0.
- Gael. London: Saqi Books. 2006. ISBN 978-1-846-59193-8.
References
[edit]- ^ "The state of dark / Judith Mok". United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. Retrieved 1 October 2024.
- ^ a b c d Ríordáin, Clíona Ní (25 May 2023). "Interview with Judith Mok". Études Irlandaises (48–1): 103–109. doi:10.4000/etudesirlandaises.14941. ISSN 0183-973X.
- ^ a b c d McGuiggan, James Camien (4 January 2023). "So That They are Not Lost". The Journal of Music . Archived from the original on 18 September 2024. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
- ^ a b c d Lee, Jenny (25 September 2023). "Dutch soprano and vocal coach to the stars Judith Mok recounts her family's Holocaust losses". The Irish News. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
- ^ a b Smither, Tanis (11 May 2021). "Interview: Renowned vocal coach Judith Mok discusses Ireland's ever-growing pool of talent". Hot Press. Archived from the original on 18 September 2024. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
- ^ Huber, Werner; Mayer, Sandra; Novak, Julia, eds. (2012). Ireland in, and Europe: cross-currents and exchanges. Irish studies in Europe. Trier: Wiss. Verl. Trier. ISBN 978-3-86821-421-5.
- ^ Bolger, Dermot (15 October 2022). "The State of Dark: Powerful memoir gives voice to a family the Nazis tried to silence". Business Post. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
- ^ Dhuibhne, Éilís Ní (12 November 2022). "The State of Dark by Judith Mok: a memoir beyond the ordinary". The Irish Times. Archived from the original on 3 February 2023. Retrieved 1 October 2024.
- ^ a b Angulo, Sergio (20 September 2012). "Judith Mok: Spanish is Great for Poetry". The Instituto Cervantes. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
- ^ a b Smith, Andrea (18 September 2011). "The never-ending love story". Irish Independent. Archived from the original on 18 September 2024. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
- ^ Vaupel, Angela (2012). "Exile, Migration, and 'The Other' in Contemporary Irish Writing". In Huber, Werner; Mayer, Sandra; Novak, Julia (eds.). Ireland in, and Europe: cross-currents and exchanges. Irish studies in Europe. Trier: Wiss. Verl. Trier. pp. 161–172. ISBN 978-3-86821-421-5.
External links
[edit]- Jadot, Marie (27 November 2023). "Étrangeté et musicalité dans l'œuvre de Judith Mok". VI Convegno Internazionale di Letteratura e Psicanalisi. University of Liège. hdl:2268/311614.
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